The Navajo County Sheriff’s Posse Pony Express Ride was held last week with the tradition of carrying local letters to the Scottsdale post office. The three-day ride finished with riders taking part in the procession in the Parada Del Sol. Pictured making a hand-off leaving Holbrook are Rex Self (left) and James Self (right).
The Navajo County Sheriff’s Posse Pony Express Ride was held last week with the tradition of carrying local letters to the Scottsdale post office. The three-day ride finished with riders taking part in the procession in the Parada Del Sol. Pictured making a hand-off leaving Holbrook are Rex Self (left) and James Self (right). Photo by Kellie Spangler
Holbrook Mayor Kathleen Smith spoke to those in attendance at the swearing in of the Pony Express riders.
Pony Express riders parade down Buffalo Street in Holbrook last Tuesday, sharing a bit of history with Holbrook Unified School District students who lined the street.
At 89 years of age, Brantley Baird is a true Western cowboy and the oldest Navajo County Sheriff’s Posse Pony Express Ride rider.
Pony Express riders prepare to be sworn in to carry the mail via horseback at Gillespie Park in Holbrook.
Longtime Holbrook residents (left to right) David Shumway, Kevin, Scott, Beth, Rex and James Self, and Allison Newhart, prepare to leave for the Pony Express Ride from Holbrook to Scottsdale.

Every year, the Pony Express Ride from Holbrook to Scottsdale takes place, a reminder that Arizona’s history is not something to be stored away in museums but to be lived, shared and passed on.

The riders who leave Holbrook do more than reenact a historic route. They carry a message about perseverance and cooperation across vast distances. The exchange of riders and horses along the trail echoes a system that once connected distant towns and territories, proving that even in harsh landscapes, people found ways to stay linked to one another.

Last week residents and students from Holbrook Unified School District lined Buffalo Street as the riders rode by enroute to the swearing in at Gillespie Park. Following the swearing in, riders and supporters attended a dinner at the Navajo County Fair Grounds, then early the next morning the ride began. Riders traveled down the rim to Payson, then continued to Scottsdale, arriving at the post office on Friday. The following day riders took part in the Parada Del Sol through Old Town Scottsdale.